


Background

by reylly_obiwan



Category: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-05
Updated: 2018-01-04
Packaged: 2018-10-28 10:57:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 16,619
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10829859
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/reylly_obiwan/pseuds/reylly_obiwan
Summary: Modern AU where Baze and Chirrut are happily married and looking to adopt/foster children. In this story, Baze is 42, Chirrut is 41, Cassian is 15, Bodhi is 14, and Jyn is 10. These parallel the actual age differences between the characters to the best of my knowledge.





	1. Chapter 1

Baze sat impatiently in the living room of their house, waiting for Chirrut to get home from work. There was a lot on his mind, and he couldn’t keep it from his husband anymore. His watch read 7:31 and he wondered what was taking Chirrut so long. He was usually done by 6:30, unless he was working on a big case. It took him a quick ten minute bus ride to get to the stop at the corner of their street, so he should be home by now. Baze sighed and turned on the TV to pass the time. He switched around channels, avoiding the news, and finally settled on an old rerun of Seinfeld. Ten minutes into the episode, he finally heard a car pull up in the driveway. He switched the TV back off and waited to see Chirrut’s sweet face walk through the door. The front door opened and Baze turned to see his tired-looking husband drop his phone on the side table and kick of his shoes while hanging up his coat.

“Hey babe.” Baze said warmly. “How was work?”

“Hi love. It was alright.” Chirrut said with a strained voice.

“Big case?” Baze asked.   
“No, no. Just a lot going on with everything that’s...well...going on out there.” he said, motioning to the outside in general.

“Of course.” Baze answered.

“How was your day? What did you do?” Chirrut asked as he sat down on the couch next to Baze.   
“I went to the hardware store and then came home and finally fixed that corner of the deck that had the rotten wood. Took me forever.”   
“Really? You’re amazing. I never would’ve gotten around to that.”   
It would be a lie to say Baze and Chirrut’s house was “run-down” or even old. They had bought it as a fixer upper when they were just married at the ages of 23 and 22, but Baze had redone almost every part of it since then. He had worked as a contractor for a few years and brought his skills home with him. It was a cozy but comfortable house, with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and an office. They had had a pool installed ten years ago and it was one of their favorite features. The deck had been built by Baze as one of the first new things when they moved in and had been about twenty years since then. Being that they lived in Moses Lake, Washington, there had been plenty of years of rain to wear down the wooden boards. 

Baze got lost in his thoughts and worries and didn’t answer his husband. Chirrut smiled at him and then got up and went to the kitchen to find something to eat. 

“Did you eat?” he called out to Baze.

“No. Not yet.” he answered. He had been to worked up before and hadn’t felt like eating.

“What should I make?” 

“Whatever.”

Chirrut closed the fridge and walked back over to the couch. 

“Are you okay babe? You sound a little off.” he said as he placed a hand on Baze’s shoulder.

“Yes. But no. I want to talk to you about something. It’s not urgent it’s just been driving me crazy and I feel like I can’t wait any longer.”   
Chirrut’s face instantly became worried as he sat down next to his husband.

“What is it?” he asked hesitantly.   
Baze sighed before answering. 

“Okay. You know how last Sunday, when we walked the dogs through Acacia park, and we sat down at that little fire pit for a while?” Baze asked.

“Yeah?”   
“And you know how we were talking and you said “sometimes I feel like something’s missing” and I agreed with you?”   
“Yes?” Chirrut answered, sounding more confused.

“I think I know what’s missing, baby. I want to adopt a kid.”

“You want to adopt a kid?” Chirrut asked.

Baze couldn’t tell what kind of tone Chirrut’s voice had and he almost lost his nerve. 

“I do. I think that our lives are great, and we have a great house, great jobs, great dogs, yada yada yada. I think a kid would make our lives even better. I think that’s what’s missing.”   
Chirrut looked at his husband with a perplexed face for a second and then smiled one of the most heartfelt smiles Baze had ever seen.

“Baze Malbus, I couldn’t agree more.” Chirrut started. “I would love to adopt a child. I’m so glad you brought this up. But I have to ask, what made you change your mind? For years you didn’t even consider it.”   
“I know I just...I just felt something click all the sudden. Like, everything I went through when I was growing up made me opposed to the idea. And then I realized I could channel it into helping someone else instead of letting it scar me any further.”   
“That’s incredible, love. I’m so proud of you for thinking like that. I know your past is something that will always affect you. But I think this is a big step in your healing.” With that, Chirrut leaned forward and took Baze into his arms. “We’re ready for this.” he whispered.

Baze looked happy for a brief moment before he suddenly pulled himself out of Chirrut’s arms. 

“Wait. There’s something else.” Baze said abruptly.   
“Yes?” Chirrut asked.

“I don’t know where you stand on this.”   
“Just tell me.”   
“I don’t want to adopt a baby. I want to adopt a kid kid. No matter how old they are. Just somebody who needs a family. Are you okay with that?” 

“Baze, of course. Whoever needs a family. I like that. We’re too old to have a baby anyway, aren’t we?” he asked laughing.   
Baze felt a huge wave of relief pour over him. He was so worried that Chirrut would disagree with any or all of this, or that he would chastise him for changing his point of view so radically. It was true that a few years ago Baze wouldn’t be caught dead wanting to adopt a child. There were scars from his own childhood that left him traumatized, and he never thought until recently that he could get over them. But, thankfully, his ever-wonderful husband had understood him and accepted him. He was such a patient man, and so much more than Baze felt he deserved in a husband.

“Are you okay now? Is that everything you wanted to talk about?” Chirrut asked.

“Yeah. That’s it. I’m sorry I was acting weird. I was just so nervous to bring it up.”    
“Baby, you  _ know _ we’ve talked about this. Never be scared to talk to me. I work with people all day who come to me because of some serious communication issues. I don’t want that with you.”   
“I know. I know. We’re all good, alright? Let me make us some dinner.”   
Chirrut smiled as Baze got up and disappeared into the kitchen. He settled into the couch and gently closed his eyes to rest for a few seconds. How did he get so lucky? Why had a man as perfect and genuine as Baze chosen him? Chirrut thanked his lucky stars as he drifted off into a light doze while he waited for dinner to be ready.


	2. Chapter 2

A few days had passed since Baze and Chirrut had had their big talk about adopting a child. Since then, they had met and spoken with a social worker and scheduled a home visit for today.

“Do you think we should’ve taken down the posters in the office?” Chirrut called out to Baze.

“What? The KISS ones? Why would we take those down?” Baze yelled back.

“I don’t know. They seem a little violent for someone who’s evaluating if we’re fit to be parents.”   
“They’re fine. It shows we’re cultured.” Baze walked into their bedroom and saw Chirrut reaching underneath the bed. He pulled out the not-so-small box of sex toys they had and started cracking up. 

“Do  _ these _ make us seem cultured?” he asked. Baze burst out laughing too and sat down on the floor next to Chirrut.

“I think we should be safe from her checking under our bed, babe.”

Chirrut chuckled as he returned the box to its hiding place under the bed. Baze leaned back and rested against the ottoman in front of it. 

“We’re really doing this.” he said with a sigh.

“Having second thoughts?” Chirrut asked.   
“No. Not at all.”

“Good. Here’s a question though; which of the bedrooms are we going to turn into a kid’s room?”   
“I guess the one down the hall from us. It doesn’t make sense to put the kid downstairs while we’re upstairs, right?”   
“Yeah, good point. Let’s go downstairs and make sure we didn’t miss anything.” Baze nodded and watched his husband leave but hesitated to get up. He gazed at a picture of the two of them in front of Niagara Falls from 2003. Was he really ready to change the comfort and routine of their lives? He wasn’t having second thoughts, was he? He shook his head and tried to reorient his mind to the joy he’d been feeling for the last few days. This was going to be a change for the better. 

He walked downstairs a few minutes later to see Chirrut on his laptop at the dining room table.

“Did we miss anything?” Baze asked.

“No. I think we’re good. We’ve got a half hour or so until she gets here.” Chirrut answered without looking up.   
“Great.” Baze said insincerely as he sat down on the couch. He turned on Netflix and put on an episode of  _ Top Gear _ to ease his mind. He tried to focus on the show and eventually got wrapped in the meaningless adventure in the episode. He glanced at his watch every few minutes until it was 4:00 o’clock exactly, the time at which the social worker said she was coming. 

4:01:31.

4:02:55.

4:03:00.

“Alright, where is she?” Baze asked impatiently.

“Honey, please. It’s 4:03. She’s literally 3 minutes late.” Chirrut answered.

“Well it just seems like the kind of thing you show up--” he was interrupted by the doorbell ringing.

“See?” Chirrut asked. 

Baze practically sprinted the front door and Chirrut walked quickly to meet his pace.

They looked at each other with a hopeful expression before opening the door. A young woman stood outside, no older than 30, with a clipboard and a pen in either hand. 

“Mr. Malbus and Mr. Îmwe?” she asked.

“Yes.” Chirrut answered.

“Hi, I’m Natalie Serkis from the Alliance for Children Adoption Agency. I’m here to do your home visit.” she said as she stuck her hand out to greet them.

“Great to meet you.” Baze answered and shook her hand.

“Thank you so much for coming.” Chirrut said as he also shook her hand. “Please, come in.” 

She followed Baze inside and smiled as she looked around.

“Okay, so I have a checklist here of a few different areas I need to check, and then we have a short interview for each of you to do.”   
“Sounds great. What would you like to see first?” Chirrut asked smiling.

“First...okay…” she said as she looked at her clipboard. “First I’ll need to see your main living space.”   
“Ah. Right behind you is our living room and dining room.” Chirrut answered.

The couple observed her as she walked around looking at bookcases and picture frames. She didn’t seem to be studying anything in particular but she still methodically walked around each part of the room.

“Alrighty then. Next up is your kitchen.”   
“Right through this door.” Chirrut said as he rushed to hold open the kitchen door for her.

“Thank you!” she said as she stepped through. The kitchen was one of the most renovated and modern rooms in the house and Natalie was clearly impressed.

“Wow. I have to say, I absolutely love the design of this room. I would  _ love _ to have a kitchen like this.” 

“Thank you!” Chirrut answered. “My husband built the entire thing.”   
“Really?” she asked, looking surprised. “That’s amazing. My husband is nowhere near that handy.”   
Chirrut smiled at her and glanced at Baze, who looked even more nervous than he did before.

“Okay, I’m going to need to see your bedroom first, and then a bedroom you would use for your prospective child.”

“Of course.” Chirrut’s sense of ease and charisma were as charming as always and he could tell he was making a good impression on Natalie. She followed him upstairs and into their bedroom. She looked around for only a few seconds before they moved on to the guest bedroom. 

Baze was fidgeting and clearly on edge the entire time. Natalie smiled as she wrote down a final note on her clipboard.

“Everything looks great.” she said. “I think we’re ready to move onto the interviews. Which of you would like to go first?”   
Baze and Chirrut looked at each other and Chirrut made the split second decision that his husband needed to get this over with before he lost it altogether. 

“Go ahead, honey.” Chirrut said to him.

“Sure.” he answered with a slightly irritated tone. 

“Why don’t we go in the office?” Baze motioned to Natalie.

Chirrut watched them leave and hoped that Baze was doing okay. He knew his husband was fit to be a good father. He had just been through a lot, and it had given him permanent mental and physical scars. But those scars made him an even stronger man. He would be a great dad, Chirrut just knew it.

Inside the office, Baze tried to appear calm to Natalie as he internally freaked out. His hands felt clammy and he desperately wiped them on his jeans while he waited for her to start talking.

“Okay Mr. Malbus, I have quite a few questions to ask you for this. This is the first of a few steps that we’ll be taking to evaluate you and your husband. Let’s start with your family history.” Baze felt himself tense up. Great. The thing he wanted to talk least about was first. “Were you raised in a two-parent household?”   
“N-n-no.” Baze stammered. He cleared his throat and tried to sound more confident. “I was raised by a single mother and five siblings.”   
“Wow. That’s certainly a big family. Where was your biological father for most of your life?”   
“He lived with us for a few years early on. When I was about six he walked out on us.”   
“Do you know why he did that?”   
“He was a big gambler. He lost all our money and instead of dealing with it like an adult, he left us to handle his mess. Never saw him since.”   
“And what was he like when he did live with you?”   
Was this an interview or therapy? Baze took a breath and continued.

“He was abusive. I’m not going to sugarcoat his behavior. He was extremely violent when he was drunk, and he was drunk most of the time.”

“I’m sorry to hear that. That must’ve been hard. How was your mother as a parent?”   
“She was tough, but she was very supportive of us. She had to work a lot, obviously, to support six kids, but when she wasn’t working she was always taking care of us and cheering us on with whatever we were doing.” Baze cringed a little bit internally as he thought about how much he was not telling her.    
“That’s amazing. Raising six kids by herself. How many brothers vs. sisters do you have?”   
“Four sisters, one brother. I’m the second oldest.”   
“Are you close with your siblings?”    
“Oh, yes. My sister who was the oldest died when we were very young in an accident, so I had to take over the job of oldest child. I became very protective of them. We’re close in age, but I always tried to make sure they were all on the right track.”   
“Of course. That sounds like a very tough situation. Now, I see from your application that you’re both interested in adopting an older child, not an infant. Can you tell me why that is?”   
“Right, sure. I just want to adopt someone who needs a good support system. Someone who maybe comes from a tough beginning like me. I feel like there’s so many young couples out there to adopt babies and give them these perfect lives from day one. I think Chirrut and I are older, and more experienced to handle an older kid. I know that a lot of kids who are older than toddlers never get adopted just because people are “scared” of what they’ve been through. I don’t feel that way. I want to help a kid who’s been through some stuff and who really needs a good support system. Sorry. I’m rambling a bit.”   
“That’s quite alright.” Natalie said smiling. “It’s really great to hear that. There is such a shortage of parents who want to adopt older kids.”   
Baze tried to smile and he hoped that had really been a good answer. It  _ was _ sincere and he wasn’t hiding anything with that response.

“So, continuing with this, what sort of values do you think you’d like to impart on your child?”   
“Values? Um, I guess I just want to raise someone who’s kind and generous. Someone who knows how to treat others and give back. That’s very important to both of us.”   
“Mhm.” she answered as she quickly wrote down notes. “And what experience have you had with children before?”   
“Aside from taking care of my siblings, not much.” Baze answered honestly. 

“Okay, that’s not a problem. A lot of people haven’t. Now, back to your family. How did your mother discipline you and your siblings? And how do you think you would discipline a child of your own?”

“My mother was very no-nonsense when it came to us misbehaving. She never really yelled at us or anything. We just kind of knew we had to behave. As for my own kid, I wouldn’t want it to be like that. I wouldn’t want them to fear me or anything. I would just try to talk to them and communicate and just try to understand each other as much as possible so that they wouldn’t feel the need to act out.”   
“Of course. Communication is  _ so _ important with older children who get adopted.”

The questions rattled on for another half hour or so, but they were focused mostly on what kind of parent Baze wanted to be. He finally relaxed when he realized he wasn’t going to have to talk about his past anymore. A couple dozen questions later, the interview was finally coming to a close.   
“Thank you so much, Mr. Malbus. Those are all the questions I have for you.”   
Baze was immediately anxious again and dying to know if he had done a good job.

“Thanks. I’ll go get Chirrut.” he said with a timid smile. The second the office door closed behind him, he laid his hands on his knees and started to take quick, deep breaths. He felt a panic attack coming on and the burn of nausea in the back of his throat. He rushed into the living room and saw Chirrut on his computer again, working on something.    
“My turn?” Chirrut asked. When Baze didn’t answer, Chirrut looked up and saw the panicked expression on his husband’s face.

“Babe, what is it?!” he asked as he rushed to his side. “What’s wrong?!” he pressed.

Baze just shook his head and sat down in an armchair.

“Just go do your interview. We’ll talk later.”   
“Did something happen? Are you okay?”   
“Chirrut, just go! We’ll talk later!”   
Chirrut hesitated and looked back at Baze briefly before walking out. He had seen him have plenty of panic attacks before, but it worried him that the interview had sent him into such a severe one. He tried to brush it out of his mind and stay calm for his interview.

Baze curled up in the armchair and pushed away all the negative thoughts surfacing in his mind. He saw emerging flashbacks and shut them out while closing his eyes. He tried to focus on nothing except his breathing as the panic slowly leaked out of his body. He knew it was irrational, but he couldn’t help thinking he had completely screwed up that interview. Something about his childhood must’ve tipped her off that he was unfit to be a parent. Baze swallowed hard and struggled to hold back tears as he began his treacherous wait for Chirrut to be done. He let the tears well up in his eyes as he thought about what an amazing father Chirrut would be. He was incredibly wise, witty, and reliable. He was certainly the most patient man Baze had ever known. He could just picture how calm and eloquent Chirrut’s interview would be. It was too bad he was an impulsive hothead who would never be approved to adopt a  _ child _ . Baze knew his thoughts were spiraling now and he shook his head as he returned to the present. There was nothing to do now except wait.  


	3. Chapter 3

Chirrut walked out of his interview a half hour later looking as chipper as ever. Baze watched as he came down the stairs, followed by Natalie a few seconds later. Baze got up and walked over to stand next to his husband and say goodbye.

“It’s been wonderful meeting you guys.” Natalie said. “I can tell that you two would make great parents. We’ll evaluate everything from today and hopefully we can get started on expanding your family soon!” 

“Thank you so much for coming, Natalie. Really. We appreciate it so much.” Chirrut said warmly as he shook her hand.

“Yes, thank you. It was great meeting you as well.” Baze said as he too shook her hand.

“Bye now. Have a nice night.” Natalie said as she closed the front door behind her.

Chirrut waited until he heard her car pull away to talk to Baze.

“Babe, what happened to you? Are you okay?” he asked. 

“I’m fine. I just got a little bit worked up from those questions.”   
“Which?”   
“All of them.”   
“Do you want to talk about it?”   
Baze hesitated. “No, thanks babe. I promise you I’m fine. Also, it’s almost 7 o’clock now and I’m starving. Do you wanna just order a pizza?”   
Chirrut sighed and tried to hide his frustration over Baze changing the topic. “Sure. Pizza’s great.” he answered.

They enjoyed a quiet evening of pizza and Netflix without speaking much, both of them trying to unwind from the anxiety of the home visit. They didn’t bring it up until a few hours later, when they were in bed about to go to sleep.

“Do you think we did okay?” Chirrut asked out of nowhere, without even knowing if Baze was awake.

“I don’t know. I hope so. I hope I didn’t freak her out.”   
“I hope  _ I  _ didn’t freak her out.”   
“How could  _ you _ possibly freak anyone out?”   
“Well it seemed to be going fine for a while. And then she asked me what I did and she seemed a little...I don’t know. Put off.”   
“That’s how people always seem when you tell them what you do.”   
“I know. But maybe I should’ve toned it down.”   
“And lied?”   
“I don’t know. What did you do to freak her out? Don’t say you don’t want to talk about it.”   
Now it was Baze’s turn to sigh in frustration.

“I might’ve gone a little too in depth about my childhood.” he said. “I started to ramble a little bit and I might’ve not filtered out some things that maybe should’ve been.” 

“Ah. Well, what can we do now but wait? There’s definitely people out there who would make much worse parents than us, right?” Chirrut asked.

“Totally.”

They didn’t speak anymore after that and slowly drifted off to sleep without saying goodnight. Baze continued to irrationally think about ruining his interview while Chirrut tried to meditate and clear his mind of his negative thoughts. 

What could they do but wait?

 

About a week and a half after the home visit, Chirrut received a phone call at work. Baze had been impatiently waiting for a call from anyone at the adoption agency, while Chirrut had anticipated it would take a while. He was focused heavily on a case at work when his secretary buzzed his line.

“Mr. Îmwe?” he heard through the phone line. 

“Yes?” he answered.

“There’s a Natalie Serkis on line 2 for you. She says it’s urgent.”   
Chirrut froze at his desk. An urgent call from Natalie less than two weeks after their home visit? 

“Thanks.” he managed to answer. He rushed to calm himself down as he forced himself to press the 2 button on his phone. 

“Hello?” he managed to say into the phone.

“Hi Mr.  Îmwe. This is Natalie Serkis from the Alliance for Children Adoption Agency. I did your home visit a few weeks ago.”

“Yes, of course.” Chirrut answered. “How are you?”   
“I’m doing well, thank you. Listen, Mr. Îmwe, I have some potentially good news for you.”   
“S-sure.” Chirrut stammered nervously.

“The agency has gone over you and your husband’s application and we all agree that you would be wonderful parents. You have been approved by the state of Washington to adopt a child!”

“That’s amazing news!” Chirrut said with a sigh of relief. “Thank you so much. This means so much to both of us.”   
“I’m sure, yes. That is not where my news ends, however.” Natalie started. Chirrut tensed up again as he waited to hear what was next. “This is going to seem very sudden, but we have a young boy we think would be perfect for your family.”   
“You do?” Chirrut said in amazement. He was completely stunned.

“We do. His name is Bodhi Rook and he’s fourteen years old. He’s from Brewster, Washington. Have you heard of it?”   
“Yes, I’ve been there a few times.”   
“Right, well, Bodhi is an only child and his parents passed away last year in a car accident. He was living with an aunt but she just died two months ago as well. He’s been with a foster family since then but it’s not going very well. We at the agency think that you two could be a really perfect match for him. What do you think about all this?”   
Chirrut felt himself tearing up at the thought of this boy who had no parents and no one to take care of him.

“I-um, I of course will have to talk to my husband. But personally, I think Bodhi sounds like an amazing kid who could use a loving family to help him with everything he’s going through.”   
“Of course, you two would have to meet him before we could move forward at all. Why don’t you speak with your husband and then call me back?”

“Certainly. I’ll call him right now.”   
“Okay. Talk to you soon.”   
“Okay, thanks.” Chirrut waited until the he heard the dial tone before he put his head on his desk and cried a little. The thought of a real child who they could possibly adopt overwhelmed him with joy. He cried for a few minutes before he composed himself and called Baze.

“Hello?” Baze said through the phone.

“Babe. I just got a call from Natalie from the adoption agency!” Chirrut answered. He couldn’t contain his enthusiasm.

“What did she say?!”

“She said they have a fourteen year old boy named Bodhi who needs to be adopted. He’s recently orphaned and he’s been in foster care for a while now. She thinks that we might be perfect parents for him.”

“WHAT?!?” Baze yelled through the phone. Chirrut laughed and grinned like crazy as he moved the phone about a foot away from his ear. “ARE YOU MESSING WITH ME?”   
“No! Baby, isn’t this amazing? I know I shouldn’t say this without having met him, but I want to adopt this boy. I’m sorry. I sound so crazy right now. I can’t control my joy.”   
“I love hearing you like this. And I’m in. You call Natalie back and let her know, okay?”   
“Okay. Love you, baby.”   
“Love you.”

Chirrut hung up and immediately redialed Natalie’s number.

“Hi Natalie, it’s Chirrut Îmwe again. I just spoke with my husband. We would love to meet Bodhi.”   
“Okay, that’s great news. I will set up a meeting with his foster parents for you two so you can meet them as well. Do you have any questions right now?”

I want to ask her how many times we have to meet him before we can adopt him, but I know that’s insane. He might not like us, he might not want to be adopted by us, whatever it may be. I gather my spinning thoughts. 

“No, I’m alright. Thank you so much for calling.”   
“You’re welcome, Mr. Îmwe. I’ll call you to schedule soon.”   
I hang up the phone and take a deep breath. This is really happening.


	4. Chapter 4

***Baze’s POV***

We’re about ten minutes away from the adoption agency when Chirrut breaks the nerve wracking silence that’s been in place since we left the house.

“Let’s remember, we’re just meeting the boy. And he’s a kid. There’s no need to be nervous.”   
“Yeah. We’re doing fine. We’ll be fine.” I answer. “But here’s a question. What are we supposed to talk about? What do you say to a kid who you’re trying to adopt?”   
He hesitates and rubs his cheek a little.

“I don’t know. Just chit chat? I’m not sure.”   
“You work with kids sometimes. You’ll take the lead, right babe?”   
“I guess. I don’t exactly work with kids in a circumstance similar to this.”   
“Yeah. I know. But I feel way out of place to handle this.”   
“You’ll be fine. We’ll both be fine.”   
The words “we’ll be fine” have been circulating around our house nonstop for the last few days. I don’t know if it’s each of us trying to comfort each other, or comfort ourselves. I can’t deny that I was excited when Chirrut called me and told me there was a boy to meet. But my excitement was equally matched by terror. What do I know about raising a child? Why, after all these years, did we suddenly decide we were  _ capable  _ of raising a child? As I pull up to the agency, I realize there’s no time left to panic right now. There will be plenty later, right?   
Chirrut looks at me before he opens the car door.

“I love you.”   
“I love you too.”   
We walk in together, holding hands, and I could swear I feel his sturdy hands shake a little. 

The inside of the agency looks pretty depressing considering it’s supposed to help homeless children. There are outdated decorations on the walls and ripped signs saying “find your forever home here.” Chirrut goes up to the front desk to tell Natalie we’re here while I look around. Seriously, this place could use a facelift. 

“You two can come back here with me in a minute. Let me just let Natalie know you’re here first.”   
She disappears into a room off the hallway for a second and then returns. 

“In here, please.” She holds the door open and smiles at both of us as we walk past her. Inside, I see Natalie standing, presumably waiting to greet us. Sitting at a small round table, looking off into space, is the sweetest looking kid I’ve ever seen. 

Bodhi.

He’s got dark brown eyes and jet black hair that falls to tiny curls at by his ears. He looks small sitting at the table alone, and he’s got to be skinnier than almost anyone I’ve ever seen before.

“Hi again!” I hear Natalie say. “I’m so glad you guys could come today. I want you to both meet Bodhi Rook.” she says, and she gestures toward the table. Bodhi stands up suddenly and walks toward us hastily. His big eyes are looking right at us as he reaches out his hand. 

“Hello. My name is Bodhi. Thank you for coming to meet me.” he says earnestly. His voice shakes a little as he speaks and I can practically feel the nerves coming off of him. His voice sounds so pure and I practically step in front of Chirrut to shake his hand.

“It’s great to meet you, Bodhi.” 

Chirrut takes his hand after mine and smiles. “So glad to meet you, Bodhi.”   
“Why don’t we all sit down and get to know each other?” Natalie asks. And we do. We spend the next half hour talking, with Chirrut and I telling Bodhi about ourselves, and him telling us about who he is.

“I’m fourteen.” he tells us. “I’m a freshman in high school right now.” He’s shy but he doesn’t seem to mind talking.

“What’re your favorite subjects in school, Bodhi?” Chirrut asks.

“I like math and science best. I want to be an engineer when I’m older.”   
“Bodhi is  _ very  _ advanced academically.” Natalie adds. “He takes math at an 11th grade level.”   
“That’s great! Engineer is a tough job. I admire you for wanting to do it.”   
Chirrut is such a natural at this. 

We keep talking for a long time and I can honestly say I haven’t been this happy in years. I am absolutely enamored by this kid. He’s so genuine and polite, but I can feel that he’s covering a lot of anxiety. I can’t think about what he’s been through right now. I can just focus on this moment, talking and getting to know the boy who might be our future son. I wish we could talk for hours more, but I know Natalie told us ahead of time that this “interview” would only be about an hour, and it’s been an hour and three minutes.

After a few more questions from Bodhi, Natalie interrupts. 

“Okay Bodhi, I’m glad you guys are getting to know each other so well, but unfortunately we have to let these two get back to their jobs!”   
I want to answer with “No, we don’t. We can talk all day.” but I stop myself. Bodhi’s face drops a little when she says this and I feel my heartstrings being pulled.

We stand up to go and Bodhi stands up and walks around the table toward us. 

“Thank you so much for coming to meet me and talk to me. It was great to meet you.” he says, shaking our hands again.

“It was our pleasure, Bodhi. I had a great time talking to you.” Chirrut answers.

“Me too. Thank you for meeting  _ us _ .” I add.

He smiles warmly and watches us walk out. Natalie steps out into the hallway and closes the door behind her.

“That was great! You guys really seemed to hit it off!” she says in a hushed tone. I’m so tempted to ask what the next step is, and I think Chirrut senses it before I say it. 

“Thank you Natalie. Bodhi is wonderful kid. Please, let us know if you’d like us to meet him again.”    
Thank god Chirrut is here to talk for the both of us. His skills from work make him always seem to know exactly what to say. 

“Of course! I’m sure he’ll be thrilled to meet you guys again. I’d like to meet with you both right now, actually, if you’ve got time. Just to talk about him. Would that be okay? Do you have time?”   
“Of course.” I answer.

“Okay. Hold on a second.” she opens the door and leans in.

“Bodhi, you can go back upstairs now.” I hear a chair being pushed and see him walk out of the room. He smiles and waves a little before walking down the hallway away from us. The three of us walk back into the room, this time without Bodhi.

“Okay, so, I just wanted to talk to you guys a little bit more about Bodhi’s past. Chirrut, as I told you, and I’m assuming you told your husband, Bodhi’s parents both died last year. In a car accident. It was very tragic. Bodhi was in the car with them but he was uninjured. Since the accident, he had been living with his aunt. Tragedy struck again three months ago when she passed away suddenly in a freak work accident. Bodhi has seen a lot of loss in the past year. He’s shown signs of rather severe PTSD since being in the accident, and it has gotten worse since his aunt’s death. The foster family he’s in right now is just...it’s not the right environment for him. It’s a two parent home, no siblings. Similar to what he was in before. But the parenting style is not seeming to work out for him. We’re not quite sure what the problem is, but we want to get him into a proper home as soon as we can. He really is a brilliant kid.”   
“Of course. He is very intelligent. Just talking to him, you can tell he’s got a really great mind.” Chirrut says.   
“He does. I think his mind needs to be nourished, and his learning needs to be encouraged, since he is at risk for a lot of problems later on. Anyway, he does benefit from therapy. He sees his therapist twice a week, and he started that about, say, a month and a half ago. It’s helped his anxiety quite a bit. He’s not on any medications yet, since the therapy has been helping. Do you have any questions so far?”   
“No.” Chirrut says. “Baze?”   
“No, no.” I answer nervously. I can barely keep it together hearing all about Bodhi’s life. He needs a good home.

“Okay. Moving on. We think that in addition to his individual therapy, he could benefit from family therapy. Is that something you two would be willing to try?”   
“Definitely.” I answer quickly.

“Great, great. One more thing. We do think that in the future Bodhi could benefit from having siblings around. Is adopting more children something you would be open to?”   
Chirrut and I look at each other and without a second of hesitation, I know we have the same answer.

“Yes.” 

Natalie smiles and finishes writing something down in the binder.

“Okay, great. I want you goes to know that everything went really well today. I think Bodhi really liked you guys. He’s not usually as open when he talks, so I get the impression he feels comfortable around you two. He could be a great fit for your family.”   
“Absolutely.” Chirrut responds. “And Natalie, if you need anything else from us, or you need us to come in for anything, do not hesitate to contact me. We’d like to do everything we can for Bodhi.”   
“That’s great to hear. Really. Bodhi deserves a good home, after all he’s been through. If you don’t have any other questions, we’re all done here for today.”   
“No,we’re good.”   
“Okay. I’ll contact one of you for the next visit.” We stand up again and shake Natalie’s hand before we walk out. I feel Chirrut grab my hand as we leave and I squeeze his. We don’t talk until we are out of the agency, out of the parking lot, and in our car. 

“Babe…” Chirrut starts. “What did you think? Did you love him? I really did. He’s so sweet. I really loved talking to him. Oh my god, I was trying so hard to play it cool. Babe. What did you think? Please tell me.

When he’s done ramblin, I look at him and smile. “Here’s what I think. That is our son.” 


	5. Chapter 5

Three weeks and two more meetings later, Baze and Chirrut were anxiously sitting in the waiting room of the office, preparing to sign the most important paper of their lives. Well, right up there with the marriage license in terms of importance. Baze was restlessly shaking one leg while Chirrut appeared calm, though he was shaking internally. It seemed like forever before they were called into Natalie’s office, but eventually the time came. When they stepped in, they saw Natalie behind the desk but no sign of Bodhi.

“Hi guys, welcome! This has to be one of the happiest days of your life!”

“The best. The absolute best.” Chirrut answered. “I can’t believe the day is here.”   
“I know! We’re all going to miss Bodhi around here! Everything is all taken care of with the judge, so we just need to get all the papers signed and then Bodhi will legally be your son.”

Baze cleared his throat and tried not to tear up as he sat down. After twenty minutes of “initial here, signature here, signature, signature, initial” they were done signing papers. 

“I’m so glad to tell you that from this moment forward Bodhi Rook is your legal child. Congratulations, you’re parents!” Natalie exclaimed.

Baze and Chirrut looked at each other with a face full of love and pride. 

“We’re parents.” Baze said breathlessly.

“We’re parents.” Chirrut repeated.

“Just to let you guys know, we have set up three months of Bodhi’s therapy, along with biweekly sessions of family therapy. After that, you two will set them up. All of his belongings are packed up with him upstairs, and he should be ready to go soon. The agency will be conducting a home visit in one, three, and six months to check on your family. Does all of that sound good?”   
“It sounds perfect.” Chirrut answered.

“Great. Then let’s go get Bodhi.” Chirrut and Baze followed Natalie up a flight of stairs to a big, open room. The first thing they saw were ten or twenty kids, running around and laughing. Crazy, wild energy like a birthday party, only it was a sendoff.

 

***Baze’s POV***

There seems to be a hundred kids running around this room. Natalie tells them all to calm down when we walk in and the volume in the room drops from 100 to 0. I look around the room anxiously until I see him in between seven or eight kids. My son. My boy.

He locks eyes with me and I see a grin come across his face. He gives a shy little wave and Natalie calls him over. 

“Kids, kids, settle down. These are Bodhi’s parents Baze and Chirrut. Everyone needs to say goodbye to Bodhi now because he’s going to live in his new home!”

Every kid in the room hugs Bodhi and says goodbye to him and I can tell that he’s the kind of kid who gets along with everyone. After a few more minutes, it seems Bodhi has said goodbye to every possible person in this room and he’s finally ready. I can tell he’s nervous and hesitant-I am too-and that he doesn’t really know how to act right now. Natalie leads us to Bodhi’s stuff, which isn’t more than a big suitcase and a backpack. I immediately pick up the suitcase and Bodhi puts the backpack on. 

“Bodhi, it’s been great having you here. I’m so happy you’ve got a new home to go to. We’ll see you in a few weeks, okay?” Natalie says.

“Okay. Thank you so much Mrs. Serkis. I can never repay you for everything you did for me.” He gives her a big hug and then smiles. “Thank you.”   
“We’ll miss you Bodhi!” she says, and all the kids join in.

“Bye Bodhi!”   
“Have fun!”

“Come visit us!”

It’s actually completely heartbreaking to see all these young kids playing together, knowing that none of them have homes or families. I can’t think about it right now though, I need to think about Bodhi. The three of us head out of the agency, for the first time as a family. In my mind, I imagined it would be awkward to just…take this kid home with us. I thought I would be at a loss for words. But everything about this feels right. 

The car ride home is a little under an hour and we talk naturally the entire time. 

“Bodhi, are you hungry?” Chirrut asks.

“Um, no. We just had lunch at the agency before you came.” he answers.

“Okay. Listen, when we get home we’ll show you where everything is and such. We’ve got two guest rooms, and you can choose whichever one you want to be your room. Then tomorrow we can go shopping and get you everything.”   
“Oh cool! Cool, thanks.” Bodhi responds enthusiastically. 

When we pull up into the driveway, I hear Bodhi gasp a little.

“Wow, this house is like, in nature. That’s so cool. My old house was right in the middle of the suburbs.”    
“Yeah, Baze practically built this place from scratch.” Chirrut says.

“Oh, that’s not true.” I answer.

“It is.”   
“Really?” Bodhi asks. “So you’re good at construction?”    
“Sure. That’s what I do.”

“Would you teach me how to build something sometime? If you’re not too busy?” he asks me. I see his dark, earnest eyes looking at me, his eyebrows raised a little in anticipation. 

“Of course. We can build anything you want.” I answer. 

“Cool. Cool.” he says. 

We get out of the car and Chirrut leads Bodhi inside. I grab his suitcase and follow them in. Bodhi looks around and smiles.

Wally runs up to him and licks his hand.

“You’ve got a dog!” he exclaims.

“We’ve got two. That’s Wally, he’s a beagle. And Tater’s around here somewhere. He’s a big ol’ mutt.”

“Wow. I love dogs. It’s a very nice house you have here.” he says politely. 

“Well, it’s your house too, Bodhi.” Chirrut replies. 

“Right. Cool.” We show him the living room, kitchen, dining room, den, and deck. He says the deck is his favorite and that he can’t wait to go in the hottub and the pool. When we go upstairs, he picks the second guest room, because he likes the little window seat. And also, Tater is sitting on the bed.

“Is that Tater?” Bodhi asks.

“Yep.” I answer. “He’s not super affectionate. He just kinda lounges around.” Bodhi smiles and pets him anyway. 

I bring his suitcase up and rest it down on the bed. 

“I really appreciate it, letting me pick a room and everything. So, um, thanks.” Bodhi says shyly. I know this must be hard for him, just walking into a strange house and trying to be accepting.

“There’s no need to thank us, Bodhi.” Chirrut answers. “We want to help you. Tell you what. Why don’t you and I run down to the market and get some stuff for dinner? What do you want to have?”   
“Oh, anything is fine. I’m not picky. I’ll eat whatever.”

“Okay.” Chirrut says with a chuckle. “Babe, we’ll be back in a bit.”   
“Okay. See you soon.” I answer. I know what Chirrut is thinking, that I’ve been around people for a little too long and that I need some alone time. But, for once, I don’t. I almost feel a little sad when he says they’re leaving, but in a good kind of way. While they’re out, I go out onto the deck and see what else needs to be worked on. It’s only February, so the pool won’t be open for a few more months. The railing on the steps is looking a little saggy. I guess I could replace that soon. Before all this, I was thinking that it was really time for me to get a new job. But now?   
I don’t know. Maybe I should be home and stay with Bodhi. I want whatever’s best for him. About half an hour later, I hear Chirrut’s car pull up. He and Bodhi walk in carrying a few bags of groceries.

“What did you guys get?” I ask. 

“We got vegetables. All kinds.” Bodhi answers.

“We’re going to make pasta primavera.” Chirrut adds. “Bodhi is a big fan of Italian cuisine.”

“Ah. Sounds great.” I answer. I gather that they’re going to be cooking tonight so I switch the TV on and watch a rerun of  _ Seinfeld _ , as usual. 

“Hey babe.” I hear Chirrut call a few minutes later.

“Yes?”   
“Before dinner, could you call Bodhi’s new school and schedule a meeting with them? Natalie registered him and everything but we have to make sure he can start next week.”

“Oh, sure. No problem.” I get up to go the office and I hear Chirrut talking to Bodhi about it. I know it’s got to be rough for him to change schools, especially since he just started high school a few months ago, but Chirrut and I did our research and found him a great Magnet school just ten minutes away from here. He was able to get in because of his advanced math, and we read up on every little detail of the school. Hopefully it’ll be a good fit. I set up an appointment with the school for tomorrow (Friday) and I realize that I’ll be taking Bodhi by myself, unless Chirrut plans on taking another day off from work. That’s fine. I can handle that. Bodhi needs to start school ASAP. I walk back into the living room and see Chirrut and Bodhi standing side by side, chopping veggies. I quickly pull out my phone and silently take a picture because they look so cute.    
Chirrut’s first picture with Bodhi. This is something special. 

“Babe, I called the school. They said he can come in tomorrow at 9:00 to see the school and meet the principal. And get his classes. Bodhi, you can start your new school on Monday.”    
“Uh, okay.” Bodhi answers. 

“Okay.” Chirrut says. “We can go shopping after that.”    
“Are you taking off again?” I ask in surprise. 

“Yeah, I figured I might as well since it’s Friday. That way we have the weekend and then on Monday we can all get into a routine.”   
“Mr. Chirrut, where do you work?” Bodhi asks. 

“I’m a criminal justice lawyer. My firm is in the town of Quincy.”   
“Wow. That’s hardcore. How long have you been doing that?”   
“Coming on almost twenty years now.”   
“Wow. Cool.”   
“Yeah. Best job I’ve ever had.”

“And what do you do, Mr. Baze?” 

“I’m an architect. But I’m taking time off right now.” I answer.

“You’re an architect? What kind of buildings do you design?” 

“All different kinds. I’ve done a few skyscrapers. A couple of parks. I love designing fountains.”   
“That is so cool. I would love to see some building’s you’ve designed. That’s why you’re so good with building things!”

“Yeah.” I say laughing. “More or less.” 

“Right. Well, anyway, I’ll take off tomorrow and we’ll go see your new school. How does that sound, Bodhi?”   
“Oh, uh, that’s okay.” 

“I know starting a new school halfway through the year isn’t exactly ideal. But it’s a great school. They have big stem focus there.” Chirrut responds.

“Yeah. That’s good.” Bodhi responds distantly. I don’t know how to comfort him but Chirrut easily changes the subject and they go back to cooking.

The dinner they cook is delicious, and we have a good conversation over dinner. Bodhi tells us about what he looks to cook, and how his love for Italian food comes from a trip to Italy when he was ten. We tell him about our ten year anniversary trip to Italy and Germany and he says he’s never tried German food. When dinner is done, I start to clean up because they cooked but Bodhi offers to help me.

“That’s okay, Bodhi. You guys cooked. I got it.” 

“No, please. I insist.” He’s got such good manners. Is it weird to already feel proud of him? When we’re done cleaning up, the three of us watch TV. Bodhi tells us that his favorite shows are  _ Friends, Shark Tank,  _ and  _ Chopped _ . We settle on  _ Chopped _ and watch a few episodes until it’s dark outside and getting late. I know I’m tired but I can’t tell if Chirrut is. When the episode ends, Bodhi yawns and stretches a little. 

“Well, I’m going to go to bed now if that’s okay.”

“Of course. You let either of us know if you need anything, okay? Don’t hesitate to ask.”   
“Thank you.”

“Goodnight, Bodhi.” I say.

“Goodnight.”   
I wait until I hear Bodhi’s door close when I cuddle up next to Chirrut and start talking. 

“Babe?” Chirrut asks me.

“Yeah?”   
“He’s perfect, right? It’s not just me?”   
“He is so perfect. He’s the sweetest kid I’ve ever met in my life. Seriously.” 

“I know. He’s so kind. He has a gentle soul.”   
“Yeah. What a great kid.”   
“Alright. Tomorrow. We’re going to his school at 9:00. Then shopping. Correct?”   
“Yes. Correct.”   
“And next week, he has therapy on Tuesday at 5:00. Can you drive him?”   
“Of course. Where is it?”   
“It’s back by the agency. I know it’s kind of far, but I think it’s important that he stays with the same therapist.”   
“Oh, of course. I wouldn’t care if it was ten hours away. Whatever he needs.”    
“Can I just say, I fucking love you even more as a dad?”   
“God, same. Look at this picture.” 

I pull out my phone and show him the picture of him and Bodhi cooking.

“Oh my god. Send me that. That is so cute.” 

“Alright. Are you ready for bed?” 

Chirrut nods and we turn off the lights before heading upstairs. I fall asleep so fast, mostly because this day has been busy as hell, but also because I feel so peaceful. My boy is asleep in the next room over. My husband is right next to me. I have everything I could ever need. 


	6. Chapter 6

***Chirrut’s POV***

The alarm jolts me out of sleep at 6:00am and I shut it off in annoyance. I check my phone before Baze wakes up, knowing he’ll yell at me to not start work first thing in the morning. I manage to answer a few emails before I hear him stirring and quickly put my phone back on the nightstand.

“Hey Babe.” he says sleepily.

“Good morning, love.” I answer.

I get up to shower a minute later and turn the tv on so Baze won’t fall back asleep. I’m showered and dressed by 6:30 and Baze is still in bed.

“Baze, we’re leaving in an hour for Bodhi’s school.”  
“Okay. I’ll get up soon.” I laugh and roll my eyes at him as I head downstairs. He’s always been a big fan of sleep. I’m pretty sure he would sleep all day if I didn’t make him get up.

I stop outside of Bodhi’s door to wake him up. I knock lightly and open the door.

“Bodhi. It’s time to wake up. We have to leave in an hour.” I hear the blankets rustling a few seconds later.

“Okay.” I hear him say. I smile at the sound of his voice. It’s our first time waking up in the same house.

When I get downstairs I open up my computer and answer more emails. Baze thinks I work too much, but he doesn’t realize that no matter how much I work, there is always more to do. Always more cases to take on. _Always_ emails to answer. I finally hear some movement upstairs and hope at least one of them is getting ready. I put my computer in my briefcase and start to make breakfast. I don’t know what Bodhi likes, so I make a variety of eggs, bacon, and toast. Enough variety for a simple breakfast. I put on coffee for myself as well. I hear light footsteps and Bodhi appears in the dining room a moment later.

“Good morning, Bodhi.” I say to him.

“Good morning!”

“How did you sleep?”  
“Oh, good, thank you.”   
“Glad to hear it. Do you drink coffee?”   
“Oh, no. Thank you. It makes me too hyped.”   
“Same with Baze. He also hates the way it tastes. Speaking of which, did you happen to see him upstairs?”   
“No.”   
“Okay. I’ll go make sure he’s up. Here, have some breakfast.” I put a plate in front of him full of food.

“Thanks!”

I head upstairs and into our room where Baze is _still_ in bed, on his phone.

“Baze, what are you doing? We need to leave in twenty minutes.”  
“Alright, alright. I’m getting up.” I cross my arms and stand in the doorway until I see him actually get out of bed.

“If you hurry I’ll save you some breakfast.” I say to him with a wink. Even when he’s annoying me he’s irresistible.

I head back downstairs and see Bodhi finishing up his plate. I pour myself coffee and grab a granola bar out of the cabinet. I’ve never been a fan of breakfast food. Baze comes down a minute later and takes a plate of food.

Bodhi’s place is empty and he looks at me hesitantly.  
“May I take more?” he asks.

“Of course! Finish it.”

“Thank you.” he says with a big smile. I’ll be damned if he is not the most polite kid on the planet.

When he and Baze are done eating a few minutes later I tell them we’re leaving in five minutes. Baze goes to grab Bodhi’s plate and put it in the dishwasher but Bodhi stops him.

“That’s okay, Mr. Baze. I got it.”

He puts away all the dishes and Baze and I smile at each other. Baze makes a heart with his hands and points it at Bodhi’s back. I resist chuckling and nod in agreement.

“Alright then. Everyone ready?” I ask.

“Yep.”

“Sure.”

We get in the car and I plug the directions into the navigation screen.

“Ten minutes. That’s not far.” I hear Bodhi say quietly. I glance back at him and see that he’s tapping his fingers anxiously on his leg.

“You okay Bodhi?” I ask.

“Yes, I’m fine. I’m just nervous.”

“I bet. It’s a scary thing to start a new school. I had to do the same thing when I was going into eighth grade.”

“You did?”  
“Oh yes. My parents decided to move for no actual reason and my sisters and I all had to change schools. I was terrified. But after some time, it felt normal again.”   
“How many sisters do you have?”   
“Three. All younger.”   
“Wow! That must have been fun.”   
“It certainly wasn’t boring. I love them very much. They’re all very excited to meet you.”   
“Really?”

“Yes. Two of them have children. All younger than you. My sister Celeste has twin girls who are six. Adorable kids. And my sister Maya has a son who’s twelve and a son who’s ten. They’re all excited to meet you. Whenever you’re ready of course.”  
“I would love to meet them! I always wanted to have cousins. Do you have any siblings, Mr. Baze?”   
“I have an older brother. But he doesn’t have any kids.”   
“Oh, well that’s still cool. What’s his name?”   
“Orion. He’s seven years older.”   
“You guys have big families!” Bodhi exclaims.

“I guess we do.”  
“I can’t wait to meet them.”   
“They feel the same way.” Bodhi no longer looks anxious, but content. I wasn’t planning on telling him about our families yet, as I thought it might upset him, but I guess I was wrong. He seems genuinely excited to meet them. We get to the school a few minutes later and I park in the visitor’s lot.

“Are you ready to go in?” I ask Bodhi.

“Okay. I guess so.” He sounds nervous again and he looks like he’s shaking a little bit.

“Hey.” Baze says as he turns around. “We’re with you every second of this, okay? You’re not doing this alone. We got you, bud.” Bodhi smiles and looks less scared.

“Promise?”  
“Promise.”

We get out of the car then and I smile at Baze. I knew he would be an amazing dad from the minute I met him. If we ever decided to have kids. Now that we do, he’s proving my point.

We walk into the school and I can tell right away that it’s pretty new. It looks very modern and polished. We follow a sign for the main office and Bodhi looks around at everything we pass.

The main office is spacious and pretty standard looking. I walk up to the desk and Baze and Bodhi hang back.

“Hi. Chirrut Îmwe here to see Mr. Schwartz. We have an appointment for Bodhi Rook.”  
“Sure, absolutely. If you don’t mind taking a seat, he’ll be right with you.”   
“Great. Thank you.”   
The three of us sit down and Bodhi starts getting jittery again. Baze puts a hand on his shoulder and gives him a sort of nod. Bodhi nods back and looks determined. But still scared.

“Bodhi Rook?” I hear a male voice say. I look up and see who I’m assuming is the principal, Mr. Schwartz.

“Yes?” Bodhi answers timidly.

“I’m Principal Schwartz. It’s great to meet you.” He extends his hand and Bodhi stands up to shake it.

“And you must be Bodhi’s parents?” he asks us.

“Yes.” I respond.

“Great to meet you both.” he says, shaking both our hands. “Let’s head into my office.” We follow him in and sit down. It’s a nice office. There’s at least ten framed pictures of a little girl I’m assuming to be his daughter.

“Bodhi, let me just start off with saying we are _thrilled_ to have you be joining our school. I’ve reviewed your transcript with some of the faculty and we’re all confident that you’re going to excel here.”   
“Thank you, sir.” Bodhi responds.

“I know changing schools can be scary, but we’re going to do everything we can to make this an easy transition for you. Let’s start with going over your schedule.” He pulls out of a piece of paper from a folder and puts it on his desk.

“Alright, so here at our school we’ve got six classes a day. Plus lunch and a free period. Your schedule starts with Honors English. From there, you’ve got your free period, followed by Honors Biology and then your Intro to Engineering. Then you’ve got lunch. After lunch, you have French I, Gym, and your last class is AP Calculus AB. You obviously have one incredible math brain! Do you have any questions so far? How does the schedule sound?”  
“It sounds good.”

“Alright. Great. So school starts at 7:50 and gets out at 2:30. Your schedule says all the class times here so you can learn those. Lunch is 11:50-12:35.”  
“Okay. All sounds good, sir.”

“Great. Do either of you have any questions so far?” he asks us.

“I don’t think so, no.” Baze answers.  
“Yeah, I think we’re good. Bodhi, are you sure you don’t have any questions about your schedule?”   
“Oh, well, um, for the French class. Is that the only language available?”   
“It is for your Freshmen year, yes.”   
“It’s just, well, I’ve been taking Spanish all year.”   
“Yes, we are aware of that. We tried to get a Spanish I class for you but they are all filled. The French teacher knows this, and I’ve spoken with her about giving you time to catch up. Next year, you can take Spanish if you prefer. French I is really just sort of serving as a filler for you.”   
“There’s no way to get him into a Spanish class?” I ask.

“No. I’m sorry, we really did try. But every class has a limit of 25 students. And well, each Spanish I class is already at 25.”  
“Okay. That’s a shame. But you can take Spanish next year Bodhi.”   
“Yeah, yeah. That’s fine. No problem.” he says with a polite smile to the principal.

“Alright, great! Moving along.” He hands Baze and I a copy of Bodhi’s schedule. “That’s for you two, just in case you wanted to know it. Or if you lose a copy.”  
“Thank you.”   
“Thanks.”   
“So, Bodhi, would you like a tour of the school?”   
“Sure.”

“Great. Follow me, guys.” The principal really does seem like a nice guy, He’s pretty enthusiastic and he does seem to be sincere.

The school is _beautiful_. There are state of the art science labs, a brand new gym and auditorium. The works. My high school was at least 70% crappier than this.

As we head back to the main office, Mr. Schwartz stops us at a room labeled “Technology Office.”

“Bodhi, I’m not sure if you know this, but every student gets a school-issued laptop here. Come with me so we can get yours.”   
“Okay. Cool.” The door closes behind them and I turn to Baze.

“This school is so nice.” I whisper.

“I know! My high school looks like shit compared to this place.”  
“Right?! I was thinking the same thing. And this guy seems nice, right?”   
“Definitely. Bodhi must be smart as hell, babe. Who takes Calc as a freshman?”   
“I know. I took Calc senior year. Bodhi is probably a genius.”   
“Our kid’s a genius!” Baze says a little louder.

We high-five and laugh until we hear the door open and immediately fall silent. Bodhi’s got a computer bag under his arm and a few pieces of paper in his hand.

“Okay Bodhi, you are all set. You’ve got everything you need from us. I just need your parents to come back to the office and sign a few things.”  
“Okay.” Bodhi answers. We walk back to the office and Mr. Schwartz tells us the school was built six years ago.

“Wow.” Baze responds. “It’s a beautiful building.”  
“Thank you! We strive to provide our students with the best possible resources.”   
“Of course. It shows.”

Bodhi sits by the reception desk and we head into the office. We each have to sign a few things, medical releases and guardianship stuff. Emergency contacts. Random things that I never even thought to prepare ahead of time.

“Alrighty!” he says a few papers later. “You guys are all set. Thank you so much for coming by. I’m really thrilled that Bodhi is going to join us.”  
“Oh, thank you, Principal Schwartz. We’re very appreciative that you’re letting him start in the middle of the year. He’s a great kid.”   
“I can tell. He’s going to be a great addition to our big family here.”   
“Thank you.” Baze says and we both shake his hand again. Bodhi stands up when he sees us and we start to leave.

“See you Monday, Bodhi!”

“Thank you for everything. See you.”

We smile and wave goodbye and start walking to the car.

“How did you like it Bodhi?” I ask.

“It’s really nice. There’s a lot of cool stuff there.”  
“Totally. And you got a computer. That’s a nice bonus.” I say.   
“Yeah! I wasn’t expecting that!”

“Well, I’m sure you’re going to do great here.” Baze adds.

We get in the car and Bodhi starts to ask something but stops.

“What is it?” Baze asks.

“Um, I was just wondering how I would get here. Should I walk?”  
“Don’t be silly. That would be a pretty far walk. One of us will drive you.”   
“Are you sure? I don’t want to inconvenience you.”   
“You could never. It’s on my way to work. I’ll take you in the morning and Baze can pick you up in the afternoon.”   
“Okay. Cool.” I see him smile to himself.

“You ready to go shopping?” Baze asks.

“Oh. Yeah! I forgot we were going to do that!” Bodhi says happily.  
“Alright. Let’s do it. Where should we go, Baze?” I ask.   
“Hmm. Bed Bath and Beyond?”

“Sure. We’ll start there.” I start driving and turn on some music. An old Beatles song comes on and I see Bodhi bopping along to the music.

“Are you a Beatles fan, Bodhi?” I ask.

“Oh yeah. They’re the best. I love rock music.”  
“Me too.” Baze answers. “Good man.”

We get to the store a few minutes later and I start to think about what we need to buy.

“Okay. We’ve gotta get bedding. A whole set. And whatever else you want to decorate your room with. Towels. Linens. All that stuff.” Bodhi nods and we walk into the bedding aisle. He looks around for less than two minutes before pointing to a dark blue plaid set.

“I like that one!” he says. Baze reaches up and grabs it and throws it into the cart. He picks out some throw pillows and an extra blanket as well as some sheets. He must really like the color blue, because everything he picks is a different shade of it.

“Oh, babe, he needs a desk. There isn’t one in that room.” I say to Baze.

“Oh yeah. Good call.”

“Alright, we’ll divide and conquer. You guys go find a desk and chair, I’ll go get towels.”  
“You got it.” Baze says.

“We’re on it.” Bodhi adds with a serious expression.

I head over to the linens and grab some dark blue towels for Bodhi. I grab a few of each size. I don’t know how many he wants, but I want him to feel like he has everything he needs. I find them in the big floor section with the chairs. There’s a big box stacked under the cart for the desk and a smaller box for the swivel chair.

“He said he wants one of these big comfy chairs.” Baze tells me.

“Good call, Bodhi.” He picks a grey bean bag.

“I was thinking he could use some posters, but I don’t see them anywhere here.” Baze says.  
“Yeah, I don’t think they sell that here. We could hit target after this.” I suggest.   
“Sure. Sound good, bud?” Baze asks him.

“Yeah!” Bodhi answers enthusiastically. We check out and load everything into the car.

“Thank you so much for buying me all that stuff.” Bodhi says once we’re in the car.

“Of course, Bodhi. Whatever you want. We want to make you feel at home.”

Target is only a few minutes down the road and there’s a Kohl’s next to it. Does he need clothes?

“Do you want to go clothes shopping, Bodhi? I don’t know what you have.”  
“Oh, uh, sure. If that’s not too much.”   
“Nope. Not at all.” We walk through Target and Bodhi picks out little decor things for his room. He finds a big map of the world tapestry and his eyes light up.

“Can I get this?!” he asks.

“Of course!” Baze answers. I don’t know about him, but I’m having so much fun. I love not only seeing what Bodhi is interested in, but also seeing how happy he gets every single time we say he can get something. He gets a few more posters, one _Captain America_ one and a _Spiderman_ one.

“I take it you like superheroes?” I ask.  
“Oh, yeah. I love them so much. Spiderman is my favorite. But everything Marvel and DC is great.”   
“Very cool.” Baze answers. We check out and again load everything into the car.

“Kohl’s?” I ask.

“Babe, you know I love you. But I hate clothes shopping so much. How about you two go and I walk over to Home Depot for a while?” Baze asks.  
“Sure.” I laugh. “Go have fun.”

Bodhi and I go to Kohl’s without him and Bodhi asks me if I like each thing he picks.

“How about this shirt?” he asks for the twentieth time.

“Very nice.”

“With these pants?” he asks as he holds up a pair of khakis.

“No, try these.” I answer. I hand him a lighter pair.

“Oh. That’s better, yeah.” He asks me about a million more times if I like things and I tell him yes. It’s purely endearing coming from him. He tries everything on and I try a few things as well.

“Did you find anything?” he asks me.

“Yes. Two shirts.”  
“Okay. I’m ready.” His arms are full of adorable little button downs and polos. What a sharp little dresser.

After we check out and get back to the car, we see Baze leaning against it, holding a large home depot bag.

“What did you get?” I ask.

“Just some deck stuff. The usual.”  
“The usual.”   
“Find anything good, Bodhi?”

“Yep!”

We finally get to head home after hours of shopping.

“Do you think we got everything we needed?” I ask to neither of them in particular.

“I think we did.” Baze says.

“I think so too. I can’t thank you guys enough. You bought me so many nice things.”  
“Anything you need, bud.” Bodhi tells him.

“We’ll set everything up when we get home.” I say.

“Sounds good.” Baze answers.

It takes us a solid three trips to carry all the bags inside when we get home. We bring everything right up to Bodhi’s room and start unpacking.

“You okay with this paint color?” Baze asks him. It’s a light shade of grey in here, same as the office and other bedroom.

“Oh, yeah. Totally.”

“What about the dresser?”

“Yeah, I like it.”  
“Okay. Good. How about you guys keep unpacking and I’ll get started building the desk?”   
“Don’t you need help?” Bodhi asks. “Oh, wait! You’re an architect. I forgot.” This makes me laugh.

“Yup. He’s got it, Bodhi. Don’t worry.” I say.  
Baze smiles and winks at us before opening the huge box. Bodhi puts clothes in the dresser and hangs them up in the closet while I put the sheets on his bed and open the up the comforter. He unpacks his other clothes from his suitcase and then puts it in the closet when it’s empty. I see him take out two framed pictures from his backpack and put them on his night stand. I realize from glancing at them that it must be pictures of his parents. Oh how my heart breaks for my boy. He doesn’t look at them long and goes back to emptying his backpack.

We make a good team. Bodhi and I are done in less than twenty minutes and Baze, being Baze, is practically half done with the desk already. I throw the last pillow on his bed and throw the wrapping into the big garbage bag we brought in.

“Test it out, Bodhi.” I say to him. He jumps onto the bed and spreads his arms out.

“Feels great!”

“Nice. Should we hang up these posters?” I ask him.

“Yes. But with what? I don’t want to put any holes in the wall.”  
“Oh, don’t worry about that. There’s no problem Baze can’t fix later. If for some reason we ever need them filled Baze will do it with no problem.”   
“Wow. That’s pretty convenient!”

“I know it. My own personal handyman.”  
“I can hear you, Chirrut.” Baze says from under the desk.   
“I know you can. Are you not a handyman?”   
“Hmm.” he answers. Bodhi and I pick spots for the posters and hang them up one by one. When we’re done, Baze is done with the desk. He’s already opening up the box for the chair.

“How did you build that so fast?!” Bodhi asks in amazement.

“Remember? Architect!” Baze responds. We both laugh and I look around. This room has been transformed. It was just an empty, bland guest room for years. There was no personality to it. Now it’s got Bodhi written all over it. All the blues look good with the grey on the walls, and each of Bodhi’s posters seems to match somehow with the rest of the room. When Baze finishes the chair, he and Bodhi move the desk to under the window and push the chair in under it. I grab all the leftover garbage and fill up the bag. The room seriously looks _completely_ different.

Bodhi’s room. I’m looking at it for the first of probably hundreds of times.

Baze grabs the garbage bag from me and and heads downstairs to put it outside.

“How do you like it?” I ask Bodhi.

He doesn’t answer at first and I see him turned away from me.

“Bodhi?” I walk over to him and see that he’s wiping his eyes. He’s crying. Quietly, but not very softly.

“What is it Bodhi? What’s wrong?” I ask gently.

“N-n-nothing is wrong.” he says through his tears. “I just never thought I would feel at home again. B-but now I d-d-do.” He puts his face in his hands and cries harder. I wrap my arms around him and hug him while trying to comfort him.  
“Shh. It’s okay. It’s okay.”   
“I’m sorry.” he cries.

“Don’t be sorry. It’s okay to feel like this. I know this is overwhelming.” He doesn’t say anything but takes his hands away from his face and tries to wipe his eyes again. I stroke his hair and continue comforting him. “It’s okay Bodhi. It’s okay.”  
“I feel like a baby for crying right now. I’m sorry.”   
“Hey.” I say as I pull away from him. I lean down and put a hand on his shoulder. “There is _nothing_ babyish about crying. It’s important to express your emotions, okay? You don’t need to feel sorry.”

“Okay.” he says with a deep breath. He starts to calm down and he wipes away his final tears. I hug him again and this time he hugs me back.

“Don’t you ever be afraid to cry. You’ve got a lot of healing to do. And we’re going to be here for you every step of the way.”

“Thank you.” he says and he gently pulls away. “If it’s okay, I just want to be alone for a little bit. If that’s okay.”  
“Of course. You come downstairs whenever you want. Enjoy your new room for a while, yeah?”   
“Yeah.” He says with his normal smile returning.

“Okay.” I pat his arm before leaving his room. I close the door behind me and let out a big sigh.

Did I handle that well?

How the hell are you supposed to know what to do as a parent?

Do I have any idea what I’m doing?

  
Am I doing _any_ of this right?


	7. Chapter 7

***Baze’s POV***

After the extremely hectic Friday the three of us had, we all needed a day to rest. Chirrut knows that Saturdays are my day to sleep in, so I don’t wake up until almost 11:00. 

I hoped Bodhi might be like me and still be sleeping, but he’s watching tv when I come downstairs and Chirrut is reading the newspaper at the table. 

“Good morning!” Bodhi says.   
“Hey babe.” Chirrut adds.

“Hey guys. When did you both wake up?”   
“6:00.” Chirrut answers.

“8:00.” says Bodhi. Damn. He’s an early riser like Chirrut. I walk into the kitchen and decide if I’m going to eat now or just wait until lunchtime. I decide to wait and walk back into the dining room and sit down next to Chirrut. 

“What are you up to today?” I ask.

“I’m not sure. What do you think?”   
“Thought I might work on the deck.”   
“With the new stuff you bought?”   
“Yup.”

“Okay. Bodhi?” he calls.

“Yeah?”   
“Do you want to do something today?”   
“Sure! But I don’t know what.”   
“Okay. Baze is going to work on the deck. But we’ll think of something.”   
“Oh…” Bodhi says hesitantly. “If it’s okay, I’d like to help him work on the deck.”   
“You got it, bud.” I answer. I feel so touched that he wants to do that with me. I know Chirrut is more naturally charismatic and, I don’t know, “warm”, I guess. I didn’t think Bodhi would want to really spend time with me as long as Chirrut was around. 

But I was wrong, apparently. 

After lunch, Bodhi and I head outside. 

“I can’t wait until the pool is open!” he says as we walk off the deck. “When does it usually open?”   
“It depends on the weather. It’s usually mid-May.”   
“Awwwww. That’s so far.” he whines.

“It’s only a few months. And we can open the hot tub earlier than that.”   
“Really?!” 

“Oh yeah. It doesn’t need to be warm to go in there. I’ll probably open it in March.”   
“That’s much closer.”   
“Sure is.”

We spend the next hour looking at all my tools, with Bodhi asking me what each one is and what it’s used for. He tells me that his dad was an accountant and nobody ever taught him any building skills. I tell him that nobody taught me either, and that I taught myself everything. He says he thinks that’s “pretty awesome” and we start to pull up some of the nails from the base of the railing.

“Why does the railing have to be replaced?” he asks me.

“Here. Lean your arm against it. With your full body weight.” He does so and the railing creaks and leans a little bit. “It’s getting too old. If it’s leaning now with only a little pressure, it won’t be long before it starts collapsing.”   
“Ohhh.” he says with a nod. It takes us maybe half an hour to pull the old railing off. The deck is only about four feet off the ground, but it’s too high to not have one. I teach Bodhi how to use the power drill and show him the right way to align a post and drill it in. He tries it on a few with me before he’s confident in doing it himself. With each of us doing posts, we split the work time in half. We finish it off with the top board and it looks great. It only took us  _ maybe _ three hours, and it would’ve taken me six without Bodhi’s help.

“Alrighty. It looks pretty done to me. What do you think?” I ask him.

“It looks great! I can’t believe we built that!” 

“We sure did. Isn’t that a great feeling?”   
“Yeah! That was a lot of fun. I thought it was going to be hard but it really wasn’t.”   
“Yup. Building is usually never hard, but it can be very tedious.”   
“Definitely!” As we’re cleaning up, Chirrut comes out to observe.

“Hey! That railing looks great, guys!”   
“Doesn’t it?” I answer.

“Wow. I’m impressed. Are you guys hungry?” Chirrut asks.

“Yes.” Bodhi and I say in unison.

“You feel like going out?” 

“Sure.” I answer. “Bodhi?”   
“Okay! I just want to take a shower first.”   
“Yeah. Me too. What time is it?” I ask Chirrut. 

“6:15. How about we leave at, say, 7:00?”   
“Sounds good.” I answer. 

Chirrut decides we should go out for sushi, so we do. We have a great dinner, easy conversation, good food, etc. I never thought I could fall in love with someone as fast as I have with Bodhi. I’ve never felt anything like the way I feel about him. He’s such a gentle soul. Everything he says genuinely interests me. I just love him so much already. He’s been here for all of two days, and I already can’t imagine my life without him. 

I hope he’s happy. My life was good before Bodhi, of course it was. Chirrut is and always has been the love of my life. But now that Bodhi is here...my life has a whole new kind of purpose. I never lived my life for anyone but myself all these years. Now everything I do is for Bodhi. 

Amazing how quickly life can change. 

 

***Chirrut’s POV***

I wake up before my alarm goes off Monday morning. I’m stressed about two things: how much work I’ve missed, and Bodhi starting school. I know this many transitions for a kid can’t be easy. Even a kid as perfect as Bodhi. After a quick shower I’m downstairs and answering emails. As usual. To get to work by 8:30, I’ll have to drop Bodhi off at 7:30. It’s usually never more than an hour with rush hour traffic. I wake up Bodhi at 6:30, our agreed upon time yesterday. I hear him get in the shower and go to wake up Baze.

“Baze.” I tap his shoulder. “Baze. Baze!” Finally, he opens his eyes.

“What?”   
“Okay, listen. You need to be at Bodhi’s school by 2:15. Don’t be late. You have to make sure to be there  _ on time _ , okay?”   
“Alright, alright. I’ll be there.”   
“Don’t forget.”   
“I won’t.”   
“Okay. I think you should get up and wish Bodhi luck before school. Or you can go back to sleep. Your choice.”   
“Chirrut, I love you, but you need to stop blabbering this early in the morning.”   
“Okay. I’ll be downstairs.”   
I know he thinks I’m blabbering but I also know that if I didn’t remind him, he would forget. That’s just how he is. I start making breakfast for Bodhi who appears downstairs twenty minutes later. 

“Do you think this outfit is good?” he asks. I look up and my heart melts at how adorable he looks. He’s got dark jeans and a grey button-down on with a maroon sweater over it. His hair is slicked back, too. Oh my god, he is so cute.

“You look great, Bodhi. Very chic.”   
“Cool. Cool.” He eats breakfast mostly in silence and I can tell how nervous he is. Poor kid. 

“Okay, Bodhi. It’s 7:15. We gotta go.”   
“Okay. I just have to get my backpack.” He runs upstairs and I hear Baze get up and say goodbye to him. He runs back down and puts his shoes on. 

“Ready?” I ask. He nods and we walk outside to the car. He’s about to get in the back seat and I look at him quizzically. 

“Bodhi...you can sit in the front.” I tell him.

“Oh, okay. Cool.” he answers and climbs into the front seat. I try to give him encouragement on the way there but he’s really shaky and quiet. When we finally pull up, I pull into a spot and put the car in park.

“Have a great day Bodhi. I know you’re going to do well. It might take some time to adjust, but you just get in there and do your best, alright?”   
“I will. I’ll see you later?” he asks.

“Yes. I’ll be home from work in the evening. Baze will pick you up right here. I’ll let him know where to go.”   
“Okay.”   
“Okay. Goodbye, Bodhi.”   
“Bye.” he says with a smile.

All I want to say to him is, “Bye son! I love you so much!” but I know I can’t push stuff like that on him yet. He is probably far from reciprocating the feelings we have for him. I watch him walk in and stay until he disappears into the school. 

Best of luck, my boy. I start to drive to work and call Baze.

“Hello?”   
“Hey Baze. I just dropped him off.”   
“Yeah? Did he do okay?”   
“He seemed nervous. But not scared. If that makes sense.”   
“Sure.”   
“Listen, when you pick him up, go into the second lot. The lot is parallel to Door C of the school. That’s where I dropped him off and I told him you’d pick him up in the same spot.”   
“Door C. Got it.”   
“2:15.”   
“I know.”   
“Okay.”   
“Have a good day at work, Babe.”

“Thank you. I love you.”   
“Love you.”   
The phone disconnects and I switch on music to try to distract myself. Why am I the one nervous when Bodhi is the one starting a new school? Why am I nervous for him? Shouldn’t I be strong and confident so that he feels that way too? 

I get to work at 8:35. Not bad. But I’ll have to leave a few minutes earlier with Bodhi in the future. Once I get to work, I am actually able to disconnect from my stress for a while. Work is certainly stressful too, no getting around that. But it’s also a channel for my energy. I’m able to wear myself out mentally while working, which I think is important. I meet with a few clients, write a few reports, and before I know it my phone goes off. The reminder I set to remind Baze to get Bodhi. I send him a text: 

“Babe, it’s 2:00. You can leave now to go to Bodhi’s school.” He instantly starts typing back.

“If you remind me one more time to get Bodhi, I might have to block your number.”   
This makes me laugh and I feel better about the situation.   
“Text me as soon as you bring him home. Ask him questions but don’t ask too many. You know?”

“Yes. I know.”   
I stop annoying him and get back to work. I’m called into a meeting at 2:30, which is annoying, because now I won’t be able to be by my phone when Baze texts. 

The meeting drags on seemingly forever. Me and a few other partners at the firm are being forced to discuss “Strategies for Excellent Lawyer/Client Communication!”

It’s a torturous seminar we have to do once a month. Of course it had to be today. Finally, at 4:15, we’re free from this crap. I practically run back to my office and grab my phone. 4 messages from Baze. 

“He’s fine. Don’t stress.”   
“First day of school milkshakes!”

*Adorable selfie of the two of them with milkshakes*

“Bodhi is one of those kids who comes right home and starts his homework. I was never like that.”

A wave of relief floods me. Bodhi looks happy in the picture. I hope he had a good day. I get some more work done and stop myself at 6:00 so I can get home in time for a reasonable dinner. 

I text Baze to let him know I’m on my way and lock my office. As I’m driving home, a thought pops into my head: Does Bodhi have a phone? I would think any kid his age does, but then again someone must be paying for it if he does have one. I get home around 7:00 and am thrilled to see that Baze and Bodhi have dinner cooking. I give Baze a kiss as soon as I see him and hang up my coat.

“Bodhi! How was school?” I ask.

“It wasn’t bad. My classes were mostly good.”   
“That’s great, bud. Did you meet any nice people?”   
“Yeah! I actually met a few nice kids in each of my classes. Except for math, cause it’s all older kids.”   
“Ah. Well, that’s alright. You’re the smartest kid in the class. Hey Bodhi, I have a question for you.”   
“Yeah?”    
“Do you have a phone?”   
“Yeah...well I...sort of? I have one but it’s not activated. When I was in foster homes they wouldn’t pay for it.”   
“Okay. Do you have it with you?”   
“It’s in my room, yeah.”   
“Okay. We’ll get right on that, then. You shouldn’t be without a phone.”   
“I can go to Verizon tomorrow and get it activated.” Baze says.

“Perfect. Now, what is for dinner?” I ask.

“Chili. Veggies by Bodhi, meat by me.”   
“Sounds great.” I sit down on the couch and put my feet up on the coffee table. This day has exhausted me. Dinner is ready a few minutes later and we sit down at the table. It’s nice to do that. Baze and I had kind of gotten into the habit of eating in front of the tv, which we both know is bad but we still did anyway. With Bodhi here, we sit at the table and have a good conversation. He tells us about each of his classes and what his teachers seem like. When we’re done, he goes to clean up as he always does but I stop him.

“I got it Bodhi. You two cooked.”   
“No, that’s okay. I’ll do it.”   
“No way. You go relax.” He seems genuinely conflicted but ultimately joins Baze on the couch. 

This day went better than I could have hoped. We’re going to get a routine going. Bodhi is going to do great at school. We’ve got a nice little life on track for the three of us. 


	8. Chapter 8

***Baze’s POV***   
After a month of having Bodhi here, I feel like I can’t remember what life was like without him. The highlight of my day is picking him up from school, hearing about his day and telling him about mine. He’s been doing really well in school and equally well with his therapist. We’ve had one family session so far which was challenging but fine. I tried to be as honest as I could, for Bodhi’s sake, but I’ve never been to a therapist before and I certainly don’t like talking about my past. 

But, regardless, he’s doing well. 

Life feels too perfect to be real. For the first time in so many years. Chirrut tells me to take it one day at a time whenever I tell him how lucky we are. He thinks I’m being too idealistic. “Be more practical,” he tells me. “Challenges are still ahead.” That’s just his logical little head talking. We can handle anything.

Until one day, when the phone rings. 

 

I’m in the middle of helping Bodhi with a school project when I hear the house phone ringing.    
“Babe, can you get that?” I yell. 

“Sure.” I hear him answer from the living room. I don’t give it another thought and I resume working with Bodhi. He’s building a  papier-mâché Space Needle for history class and he needs help cutting the ten thousand strips of paper. It seems like that many considering how long we’ve been at it. He doesn’t seem to mind, though. He’s quiet and content as he works and we don’t talk much. A few minutes later Chirrut walks into the room.

“Baze, can I talk to you for a moment?” he asks. His voice sounds weird and I look up to see that he’s kind of pale.    
“What is it?” I ask quickly.

“In the office.” he answers and walks out of the room. 

“Be right back, Bodhi.” I say before following him. I take the steps two at a time and close the office door behind me. He sits down at the desk and looks up at me.

“What happened? What’s wrong?” I ask nervously.

“That was Natalie from Bodhi’s agency.”   
“Oh my god. What. Chirrut. What?!” I practically yell.

“Shh! Calm down. It has nothing to do with Bodhi. He’s fine.” Relief floods over me and the terror that gripped my heart passes.

“Dear god. What is it then?”   
He swallows and takes a deep breath before he talks.    
“Okay. She called to tell me about two kids who recently entered the system. A brother and sister who are fifteen and ten. They’ve been through quite a bit the last few years. Their mother died when they were young and they’ve been in and out of foster care because their father has been on drugs. Well, he just overdosed and died. So the kids are in need of a permanent home. She called to ask if we’d like to meet them.”

So many things run through my head and I sit down at the chair across from the desk. I’m silent for a while, trying to process any or all of what Chirrut just said. Finally, he breaks the silence.

“Baze. Tell me what’s going through your mind right now. Your instinctual thoughts.”

“I mean...we’ve talked about adopting more kids, right?” I answer slowly. “It sounds crazy, and I definitely don’t feel calm, but…” I trail off.

“But?” he asks.

“I’m not opposed.” I answer.

“I agree.” he says. “But there’s a lot we need to think about before we agree to meet them. Before we even think about meeting them. So many logistics.”   
“Like?” I ask. This is usually the way we talk things over, with one of us asking questions and the other filling in answers back and forth. 

“Well, first of all, Bodhi. I don’t know how he would feel. He’s been an only child his whole life. He might have no interest in siblings.” he says.

“I think if we talk to Bodhi and he has any objections, we’re out. We don’t even know these kids. Bodhi is our son. If he’s not in favor, I’m not either.” I interrupt.

“No, I agree with that. So that’s priority number one. Bodhi’s opinion. Another thing we need to think about is house logistics. We have three bedrooms. I doubt a fifteen year old boy is going to want to share a room with his ten year old sister. That means Bodhi and this boy would have to share.”   
“Shit.” I answer. “I didn’t think about that. I mean, it would probably be kind of rough in the beginning. But kids share rooms. I shared a room my entire life. It’s not an uncommon thing.”   
“Yeah. But what if they don’t get along? I don’t want it to have a negative effect on either of them.”   
“I don’t know. That’s a pretty small concern to me. I don’t think it’s a big deal.”   
“Alright. I’ll trust you on that one. Another thing, Natalie said the boy goes to St. Luke’s over in Mitchell. That’s the opposite direction from Bodhi’s school. And the girl’s school is near Bodhi’s because it’s the elementary school for his school’s town which is fine. But logistically, if we were driving all three, how would that work?”

“Hm. That could be a problem. What about bussing? Maybe St. Luke’s has busses?”   
“Yeah, possibly. I’ll look into that. Okay. Financially? Can we support three kids?”   
“I would have to go back to work probably.” I answer. 

“That’s what I would thinking.”   
“Which would make taking care of two more kids more difficult. But I don’t think your salary alone can support a family of five.”   
“No.” he answers, shaking his head. “We have enough saved that maybe you could start a few months after.”   
“That could work.” I respond. “So basically, what we’re saying is, we’re both on board. And willing to work.”   
“If Bodhi’s on board.” Chirrut adds.   
“Yes. We struck gold with Bodhi, right? We might not be so bad at this.” I tell him.

“Alright, well, every kid is different. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.” I roll my eyes at his usual cynicism. 

“Babe.” I say, looking right at him. “We can do this. If we’re meant to be these kids parents, we can do it.”   
“I love you, Baze. I love your crazy, over-idealistic head that’s stuck in the clouds.”

“And I love your uptight little brain that’s stuck rooted in the dirt.”   
Chirrut laughs and I’m thrilled that we’re in agreement. Why does it feel so natural to me that I would want this? Maybe because Bodhi is perfect. Maybe because parenthood has changed me, I don’t know. 

“Alright, first things first, let me help Bodhi finish his project. Then tonight me and you will figure out what to say to him.”   
“Deal.” I wink at him before walking back downstairs to rejoin Bodhi at the table.

“Is everything ok?” he asks me, his big brown eyes open wide.

“Everything’s fine, bud.” I tell him. We return to cutting paper strips.

Life’s perfect, right? I thought it couldn’t get better. But maybe I’m wrong. Maybe there’s somehow room in my heart to love someone as much as I love Bodhi. 


End file.
